The Perfect School
by bakaneko817
Summary: Uchiha Sasuke," his new roommate shook hands with an impassive expression on his face, then turned around and walked away. Naruto gulped...college was going to be a lot different, even in his perfect school.
1. Default Chapter

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, neither the anime show nor the characters. I'm not making any profit from this. Basically, please don't sue me!

The Perfect Choice

It was the perfect school. Naruto breathed in the cool air and released it in one word, "Perfect..."

He scratched his unruly yellow hair and turned to his former teacher, mentor, and present guardian.

"Ne! ne! Iruka-sensei! This is where I want to go!"

Iruka looked over at his hyperactive charge skeptically.

"Are you sure? You haven't even seen the classrooms yet...and there are so many other things you have to look at first! You have to make sure the teachers know what they are doing and have some experience and high education, the accommodations inside the dorms have to be clean or else you will get sick from all the mold and goodness knows what else growing inside dark rooms, they need to take you for a tour and describe all the different majors and minors they do, oh! And of course, you need to meet the other student because you're only staying here if the are well-mannered and nice!"

Naruto made a face at his sensei. "Ano...sensei, it doesn't matter if the other kids aren't nice. I'm kind of used to that by now...besides, this is college! You always tell me all the bad things that happen on these campuses, but I just have to find the right people!"

His grimace turned into a smile by the last optimistic statement, and his sky blue eyes curved up happily. Iruka scratched his head sheepishly, "I didn't mean that those things happen all the time at college..."

He half regretted all the horror stories he'd told Naruto about senior pranks and immoral students and teachers.

"Although," his mind amended, "it's a definite improvement if Naruto actually remembered anything I told him."

Iruka continued aloud, "College is a great opportunity for you to meet different people, who will be like yourself or maybe not as similar to anyone you know. Here you should branch out your interests and...Naruto? Naruto!"

The blonde was already half way up the hill to a large, graying building that overlooked the shady trees. A sign in front of it read "Konoha College of Liberal Arts" and appeared to have the school's principal and administration listed beneath it, but Iruka couldn't be sure due to the students studying in front of it and leaning against the sun-warmed wood. Other students were scattered on the hillside, lying in small circles or studying solitarily. Several couples were even engaging in some affectionate displays, and Iruka thought again to himself about the immorality of such PDA.

It was by no means a large college, and apparently it did not receive many visitors, so several students looked up at the hyperactive blond bouncing up the leaf-dotted path. Naruto, for his part, did not notice the stares following him as he reached the top and shouted down to Iruka, "Oy! Sensei! It lists the majors right here! We don't even need to go inside!"

His inspection of the school complete, Naruto then began his descent down the path, but slipped on a clump of fallen leaves. He screeched as his feet were pulled out from under him and flailed his arms uselessly when he fell on his butt and skidded down the steep hill. Halfway down, he saw a rock that he was hurtling toward at an alarming speed, so he utilized his primary instinct of survival...and screamed.

"Iruka-sensei!!!"

Unfortunately, said sensei was gaping wide-mouthed at the young boy, and wondering how on earth he managed to slip on leaves and appear so uncoordinated after Iruka had been sending him to taijutsu classes for the past seven years. Flustered, Iruka barely had time to let out a yelp himself as the spinning ball of blonde and orange bounced off the rock and came to land in a jumbled pile on top of Iruka.

The first thing Naruto heard as he dislodged the wad of ground-up leaves from his ear was that the dull ringing he had been hearing was actually the piercing voice of his guardian, who was (Naruto discovered after unclogging his other ear) giving Naruto a flowing lecture about the dangers Naruto posed to himself as compared to any sort of punishment another human being could, knowingly or unknowingly, inflict on him.

"Ittai!" he whined in response to the scratches on his arms, then looked around at all the giggling faces of college students and whispered to his mentor, "Ne...sensei...could you stop it? You're embarrassing me!"

Iruka's mouth hit the ground in shock before he roared, "_I'm_ embarrassing _you_?! You knocked me over by yourself!"

"Demo, sensei! You're shouting loud enough for everyone to hear..."

"I AM NOT! Well...okay...maybe I am," he amended as he turned to see even the previously kissing couples stop their displays to look over curiously at the livid brunette.

"Serves them right..." Iruka muttered under his breath as he turned back to Naruto, grabbed the blond by his collar, and pulled him away saying something about finding the infirmary to wash those cuts before they became infected.

Naruto looked back at the hill as he was dragged away and jumped slightly as he felt a pair of eyes watching him from beneath the shade of the beech trees. There a pale youth with red hair and vivid green eyes stood leaning against the light bark of the tree. His gaze was piercing, and there was something in the posture of his slight body that told Naruto he was a loner, in a different, more secretive and dangerous way from the many other students who sat alone on the hill. He shivered and dragged his gaze away as Iruka succeeded in pulling him around a curve and the boy was hidden behind the trees.

A/N: in the first chapter, Naruto will be moving in and meeting his new roommate, the one and only, irresistible Sasuke! Of course, Gaara will show up again, plus Itachi and many others! Please tell me if you like it or think its worth writing more!


	2. New Beginnings

New Beginnings

Leaves swirled around the path as thunder shook the trees. Brilliant streaks of lightning lit up the sky and revealed two struggling figures carrying boxes into the shelter of an old dorm hall. They were bowed against the wind and tentatively feeling their way on the slippery tiles to the one small door that led inside.

Iruka balanced two cardboard boxes, now soaked and flimsy from the rain, on his knee as he jiggled Naruto's key in the lock, venting his frustration in gasping breaths.

"Na-ru-to..." he voiced, "why..."- gasp- "does..." –gasp- "your" –big gasp- "doorlockautomaticallyeverytimeitshuts!?"

The question was quite unfair seeing that Naruto was unable to answer in his present state; he was about to drop his two boxes because a bed sheet had blown from the top of one and covered his head and face to the point where he couldn't see Iruka or the door. Finally hearing the click of the lock, he did the only thing possible and kicked blindly in front of him, knocking the door open, and falling through it. Iruka followed him through in a slightly more dignified manner, or as dignified as he could manage while looking like a drowned rat.

"Sensei..." Naruto whined, "why have I ended up scratched and on the floor both times I've been here so far..."

"You'll survive," he answered brusquely. "I, on the other hand, will not if I'm not back at work tomorrow, and it will take me hours to get to the airport through this storm. I practically had to beg Ebisu-san to cover for me today, so I can't make him do it again tomorrow."

Naruto made a face at the mention of Iruka's business colleague, but Iruka had never quite understood why the boy hated him so much.

"Well, Naruto...I guess we're just going to have to hurry up and move your stuff upstairs."

They both looked up at the winding staircases of gray cement. The steps seemed to ascend forever, despite what a small building the dorms were. Windows were periodically installed into the thick walls to let light into the now dark stairwell. Lightning flashed as they looked at Naruto's pile of belongings in front of them.

"What floor did you say your room was on again?"

"Fourth..." Naruto said gloomily.

Iruka glanced at the disheartened blonde, "Cheer up! It could always be worse!"

"...out of four floors." Naruto finished.

Iruka deadpanned.

Only an hour later, both student and teacher were standing outside room number 404, panting heavily with the exhaustion of the climb. It had not taken as long as both thought it would, due mostly to Naruto's limited personal items. He only had four cardboard boxes full of manga, notebooks, burned c.d.'s which Iruka was constantly telling him not to pirate, his sketchpads, and his most prized possession- the laptop. The only reason he had brought anything else was because Iruka insisted that he needed the necessities, such as a small refrigerator, microwave, and a pot to boil water for the box comprised entirely of instant ramen cups.

Iruka had dumped everything outside the door and told Naruto that he would have to move in by himself because Iruka had a plane to catch. Now they were both surveying the boxes in the dimly-light hallway.

"Well, there's everything. I'm so sorry, Naruto. I really wish I could help you move everything inside your room. Don't forget to clean every surface with the Lysol disinfectant spray before you put something on it! It's my fault that I didn't tell Sarutobi-san that I wouldn't be in for work tomorrow. If your roommate's not nice, then just remember you don't have to associate with him! Oh I wish I could at least stay to see your room."

"Iruka-sensei," Naruto grinned embarrassedly while rubbing the back of his head, "you said you're coming up to see me in two weeks anyway, so you'll be able to see my room then."

"Yes, yes, of course you're right. I just don't want you living in some mess before I get up here to sort everything out!"

"Maa maa, I'm fine by myself," he pouted.

Iruka ruffled the drying locks of hair fondly, and announced, "Well, I've got to get going, Naruto."

The two walked back downstairs in silence, except for the occasional roar of thunder from outside.

This parting, even though it was rushed, was still emotional for the two of them. They had become so close during the years, even though Naruto still acted like an independent kid who had no use for such a guardian. Similarly, Iruka yelled at Naruto about his health and bad habits and swore that he would be much less stressed with his disrespectful charge gone, but he too was already missing Naruto more than he thought possible.

Iruka gave one last affectionate hug to the unusually solemn boy, then walked down a winding road that led him out of sight and to the car park a fair distance in front of the building.

Naruto stood unmoving in the rain, silently watching the retreating figure's back before it disappeared behind the wind-whipped trees. Only then did he turn slowly to face his new home, the place where he would spend the next year of his life at least. He lifted his head up and drank in the rain droplets that fell so fast they stung his tongue with their contact.

"Finally," he thought, "this must be my first taste of freedom. I can start all over and have my life be different here. I don't have the reputation I did back in the village."

He then walked back under cover, with his step considerably lighter, and began the long climb up to his floor. Walking in his hallway once again, Naruto finally noticed the absence of other students. Sure, only the freshmen would be moving in today, but shouldn't there be others arriving?

"Right, the storm," he reminded himself aloud as he knocked on his door out of courteous habit, "I doubt anyone else will be in this building for days..."

But that thought was completely banished from his mind as the door swung open to reveal a stranger ("my roommate," he reminded himself) standing in front of him.

Recovering quickly from his shock, and realizing that the dark-haired guy in front of him hadn't even blinked or moved a muscle, Naruto stuck out his hand and announced, "Konnichiwa! I'm Uzumaki Naruto, your new roommate!"

The other boy accepted the hand, his face impassive, and looked Naruto over with piercing black eyes.

"Uchiha...Sasuke."

A lightning bolt flashed by their dorm-room window, and suddenly the building was plunged into complete darkness.

A/N: so how is it? Sorry if Naruto was a little OOC but he definitely has emotions and I think they would show in something as important as leaving Iruka for the first time. Reviews are greatly appreciated...


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